Key Takeaways
- New York pet owners shopping now are buying under current rules — the new protections apply to policies issued, renewed, or modified 180 days after the bill becomes law, not immediately.
- The bill’s most consequential disclosure requirement forces carriers to reveal whether your claims history or pet’s age can drive premium increases at renewal — information New York law currently doesn’t require carriers to provide.
- Banning accident waiting periods removes a specific abuse path where carriers reclassify acute injuries as illnesses to trigger waiting period denials.
New York is one Senate floor vote away from having the most detailed pet insurance regulatory framework in its history. A.11164, sponsored by Assemblymember Pamela Hunter (D-128), cleared the state Assembly and is now on third reading in the state Senate, the final procedural stage before a full floor vote. Its Senate companion is S.10225, carried by Insurance Committee Chair Jamaal Bailey (D-36). PIA Northeast confirmed the bill’s status as of May 29, 2026, with a follow-up dispatch on June 4 reaffirming it.
If Governor Kathy Hochul signs it, the New York Department of Financial Services (DFS) gains explicit oversight authority over pet insurance products. The DFS Superintendent would be required to promulgate implementing regulations. The law takes effect 180 days after signing and applies to all policies entered into, renewed, or modified after that date.
What the Bill Requires
The provisions target the two areas that generate the most friction in pet insurance: waiting periods and the disclosures that don’t currently have to be made.
On waiting periods, the bill bans them entirely for accident coverage. No carrier operating in New York could impose any waiting period before accident claims become eligible. For illness coverage, waiting periods would be capped at 30 days. Orthopedic conditions, where some carriers currently impose waiting periods of six months or longer, would also fall under the 30-day cap. One exception exists: if the insured pet has a veterinary examination at enrollment, the waiting period can be waived.
The disclosure requirements extend further than anything currently required in New York. Carriers would have to specify whether the policy excludes pre-existing conditions, hereditary disorders, congenital anomalies, or chronic conditions. Deductibles, co-insurance percentages, and annual or lifetime benefit limits must be clearly stated. The provision with the most long-term significance for existing policyholders: carriers must disclose before the policy is issued whether premiums can increase based on the pet’s claims history, the pet’s age, or the policyholder’s change of location.
Right now, a New York pet owner can file several claims and have no right to know whether those claims influenced the renewal premium. The carrier can raise the rate and attribute it to market conditions. Under this bill, that opacity disappears at the point of sale.
The bill also requires a standardized “Insurer Disclosure of Important Policy Provisions” document delivered in 12-point type at policy issuance, a 30-day refund window for new policyholders, and producer training mandates. It bans carriers from marketing wellness programs as pet insurance or conditioning a pet insurance sale on a wellness program purchase, a practice that blurs the line between insurance coverage and subscription services.
Why Waiting Periods Are the Central Issue
In the insurance business, what gets classified matters enormously at the point of a claim dispute. I’ve watched carriers review veterinary records after a claim and find a note from 18 months prior mentioning mild joint stiffness, then reclassify a torn ligament from accident to illness. The illness waiting period applies retroactively, and the claim is denied. Banning accident waiting periods removes one dimension of that dispute. If coverage starts on day one for accidents, the carrier can’t invoke a waiting period to reclassify an acute injury. It doesn’t close every dispute path, but it eliminates a specific mechanism that’s generated complaints in this market for years.
The orthopedic waiting period cap is also meaningful. Hip dysplasia, cruciate ligament issues, and elbow dysplasia are among the most common, and expensive, conditions in dogs. Carriers have used extended orthopedic waiting periods to screen out pets whose owners only enroll after noticing early signs of joint problems. A 30-day hard cap ends that practice under New York law.
The Market This Bill Is Entering
The North American Pet Health Insurance Association (NAPHIA) reported 6.4 million pets insured in the United States at the end of 2024, more than double the 3 million insured in 2020. That’s still under 4% of the estimated total U.S. pet population. A 2026 Rover survey found veterinary costs rose 15% for dog owners year-over-year; 38% of respondents said they would go into debt to cover an emergency vet bill. Americans are projected to spend $165 billion on pet care in 2026, according to estimates from Triple-I and the American Pet Products Association.
Current average pet insurance premiums run about $81.76 per month for dogs and $43.74 per month for cats. Those figures will move in either direction depending on how carriers price the reduction in adverse-selection flexibility that comes from eliminating waiting periods. Carriers will argue that day-one accident coverage increases the risk of people enrolling after an injury has already occurred. That argument has merit in theory. How much it actually shifts premiums depends on the DFS implementing regulations, specifically, whether the Superintendent imposes rate review standards that limit carriers from pricing aggressively to compensate.
What New York Pet Owners Should Do Now
If you’re shopping for best pet insurance in New York today, you’re buying under current rules. The new protections don’t apply until 180 days after the bill becomes law, and only to policies issued, renewed, or modified after that date. Before that effective date, waiting periods and premium transparency disclosures remain whatever the carrier’s current policy documents say they are.
Read the waiting period section and the renewal rate adjustment language in any policy you’re considering now. Ask the carrier directly whether your pet’s claims history can affect your renewal premium. If the answer is evasive, that tells you something. Check pet insurance cost comparisons with that question in mind, the carriers that disclose premium adjustment factors voluntarily, before any law requires it, are worth noting.
